Category: Trade Secrets & Restictive Covenants

A non-compete clause prevents an employee from working for a competitor, typically for anywhere from six months to two years, after their employment ends. Historically, with the exceptions of California, North Dakota, and Oklahoma, courts have enforced such clauses if they are reasonably drafted to protect a legitimate business interest. But non-compete clauses are still disfavored. A majority of the forty-seven states that permit enforcement of...

Last week, the D.C. City Council passed one of the most sweeping bans on non-competition agreements in the country.  The bill (B23-0494), which passed 12-0, would prohibit non-compete agreements for nearly all employees working in the District of Columbia, with an exception for certain medical professionals.    Notably, the bill does not merely ban non-compete agreements for subsequent employment; it also bans non-compete agreements for...

This past week, President Obama signed into law the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016, which can be found here.  The Act creates a federal cause of action for trade secret misappropriation, and complements the many state laws (typically based on the Uniform Trade Secrets Act) already in effect. The Act provides a claimant a number of strong tools. Perhaps most importantly, it allows for the ex parte seizure of the claimed trade secret upon affidavit...